Industry Profile:Numa Saisselin

 By Jane Cohen & Bob Grossweiner

Numa Saisselin is the CEO of the Count Basie Theatre, Inc. in Red Bank, N.J., the culmination of his sterling credentials.

Since taking the big chair at the Basie just three years ago, Numa and the nonprofit theatre's board of trustees and staff have increased the number of in-house promotions from just a dozen to about 50 a year, increased rental business from 50 or 60 performances a year to about 100, and increased the venue's annual attendance from about 50,000 to over 130,000 people a year.

The theatre's annual operating budget has also doubled to $3.5 million a year, and a cumulative deficit has been eliminated. Enrollment in the Count's Cool School, the theatre's arts education program, has increased from 60 to more than 600 students a year, and a new partnership with American Jazz Venues is incubating the Count Basie Theatre Youth Jazz Orchestra and Program, Numa informs proudly.

In addition to those successes, $1 million of capital improvement funds were raised in 2004, and in the summer of last year closed the theatre for a month to replace its 40-year-old seats (acquired used from Carnegie Hall in 1986) with brand new historically accurate seats designed by theatre architect Francesca Russo and manufactured by Irwin Seating. The theatre also demolished and restored its balcony to its original 1920's configuration, raising the house capacity from 1,400 to 1,550.

The Count Basie Theatre reopened on August 20, 2004 in time to celebrate the 100th birthday of its namesake, William "Count" Basie, with a gala performance by Nnenna Freelon and the Count Basie Orchestra.

In 2005 the Basie steps into the producing world with the creation of the Jersey Shore Rock and Soul Revue, a project to pay tribute to the great artists of the rock & roll era and the body of work they produced, featuring an all-star ensemble of the Jersey Shore's finest musicians under the musical direction of Bobby Bandiera. The Feb. 25 debut performance is already almost sold out, and plans are underway to tour the show. Also on tap in 2005 is the premiere performance of the Minneapolis based Shapiro and Smith Dance Company's "Anytown," an evening-length modern dance work with music by Bruce Springsteen, Patti Scialfa and Soozie Tyrell.

Numa comes to Basie from The CSI Center for the Arts, a five-theatre complex on the campus of the City University of New York's College of Staten Island, where, from 1998-2002, he was its managing and artistic director. While there he inaugurated the two-year-old facility's performing arts series, increased the annual budget from about $350,000 to more than $1 million, and increased annual attendance by 500%. One accomplishment was the creation of the CSI Center's Dress Rehearsal Contract for Artists and Ensembles, which provided commercial and nonprofit producers with dress rehearsal space and technical support in exchange for performances, enabling the center to present the opening performances of 13 national tours by The Acting Company, DanceAisa, and several other well-known producers.

From 1992-1997 he was the executive director of the Paramount Center for the Arts, a 1,000-seat, circa 1930 historic theatre in Westchester County, N.Y. During his tenure the venue's annual attendance, average attendance and annual budget all doubled, a cumulative deficit equal to half the annual operating budget was eliminated, and the organization began to restore its building with a capital campaign to restore the theatre's historic marquee, raising almost 30% more than was needed.

Numa's rise to the top is a study in hard work and commitment. He put himself through music school working as a stagehand, and graduated music school thinking that he would become a high school band director. He taught music in a special education school for a year but through continued work as a stagehand, he discovered the field of arts administration.

On the way up he was the associate director of the Paramount Center for the Arts, a fundraising consultant for Circle of Dance Repertory and Cartoon Opera, the business manager and grants writer for Friends of the Arts, technical director of the Harry Chapin Rainbow Stage in Huntington, N.Y.'s Heckscher Park, the host and producer of C.W. Post College Public Radio's "American Music Masters" series, and a would-be lighting designer. In 1986 Newsday said that his lighting design for Studio Arena Theatre's production of "Brighton Beach Memoirs" "…handsomely enhanced the set design..."

Numa has been a grants panelist for the New York State Council for the Arts, the New York Foundation for the Arts, the J.M. Kaplan Fund, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Council on the Arts and Humanities for Staten Island, the Westchester Arts Council and the Westchester County Office of Cultural Development.

He has been a board retreat facilitator for the Northern Westchester and Putnam Women's Center, and a speaker on arts marketing, community development, and historic theatres for the Northeast Performing Arts Conference, the Council on the Arts and Humanities for Staten Island, the West Brighton Local Development Corporation, the Putnam County Division of Planning, the Southeast Museum, and the State Theatre in Ithaca, New York.

Numa has authored articles for the Association of Performing Arts Presenters, the Association of College, University, and Community Arts Administrators, and Newhouse Newspapers. He is a past president of the Consortium of Eastern Regional Theatres, a member of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters and the New Jersey Co*League for the League of Historic American Theatres.

He is the recipient of the Council on the Arts and Humanities for Staten Island's Esther Dean Award for Community Service for spearheading the response of the cultural community of the New York City Borough of Staten Island to the events of September 11, 2001. He has also received the Rotary District 7270 Governor's Award for Best Newsletter, The Management Institute's Outstanding Leadership Award, Fredonia College's Alma Mater Society Award (that institution's highest non-academic honor), and the Daughters of the American Revolution Good Citizenship Award (received in high school for reasons that remain a mystery to this day).

A native of Huntington, Long Island, Numa holds a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from the Fredonia School of Music, where he studied French Horn and some conducting, a Master's Degree in Business Administration from the Adelphi University Schools of Business and Banking, and a post graduate certificate in Nonprofit Management from The Management Institute at the Springfield College School of Human Services, which he attended on a full and unsolicited scholarship from the Texaco Foundation.

Numa now resides in Asbury Park, N.J.. with his two cats, Fat Boy and Leo.

Why did the Count Basie Theater decide take booking in-house? Well, it was three things really. First, the organization had received a clear message from the few funders it had at the time, and this is about four years ago before I was in the picture, that they made grants to us to serve the public through programming, not to pay the oil bills. Two, all of our financial eggs were in the same basket, theatre rentals, and any good financial analyst will tell you that's a dangerous thing. So we wanted to diversify and expand our income streams. And three, and this is going to sound corny, but it's true, this organization felt a moral obligation to be doing the kind of work that we are supposed to be doing as a nonprofit corporation, namely, being the catalyst for bringing the kind of cultural and performing arts programs that are not otherwise available in this market together with audiences.

I can't actually take credit for that. I was here when that effort began, and one of the reasons I got hired was I had a clear track record of being able to jump start organizations into that process. But the initial direction came from the Board of Trustees that I report to, which is headed by Richard Struse, who while keeping everyone focused on the financial realities of maintaining the building and the organization, has kept the board, me and the staff focused on the fact that we're supposed to be serving the public. There's nothing wrong with entertainment for the sake of entertainment, and certainly nothing wrong with a boffo box office from time to time, but not everything should be about making a buck.

Do you still use outside promoters? We don't use the term "use outside promoters," because we program successfully in our own right. But we do rent the building to many outside entities every year; about 100 dates a year. Many local nonprofit organizations use the building at a discounted rental, from the small like the local community theatre, to statewide organizations like New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. There are several concert promoters who work out of the building on a regular basis. Jack Utsick Northeast, Clear Channel, AEG and Metropolitan Talent have all been in our building a few times over the last three years, and AM Productions is in the building a lot. I can't say enough about them in particular. Stan Andrucyk and Terry McDermott of AM Productions have a sixth sense of what's going to work and what's not that I truly envy, and they're two of the most standup guys you're ever going to meet anywhere.

First concert attended Maynard Ferguson, Stan Kenton and Sarah Vaughn at the Westbury Music Fair in 1975. Maynard was god if you were in the high school jazz band back then. I didn't even know who the other two were, but when I look back, I feel privileged to have seen that show.

First concert worked Asia in1982. I ran the stage right upstage tower follow spot.

First industry job Stage crew at the amphitheatre in Heckscher Park, Huntington, Long Island. I did one summer as a security guard, one summer on the crew, and three seasons as technical director.

Career highlight Right now we have a great venue that's getting better every day. We started programming in-house three years ago. The audience has known the Basie for rock and pop for over 30 years. Now we're slipping them some cultural and off-beat acts. It's a gas to see them eat it up.

Career disappointment I know there have been some real disappointments, but I can't think of any off the top of my head. The worst as a presenter or promoter are the performances that people should have seen--that great show you took a financial bath on. But if you're going to last, you learn quickly to shrug it off. I analyze the disappointments for what can be learned for next time, but I don't dwell on them. It's a necessary survival skill.

Greatest challenge Staying upbeat. I think about the worst case scenarios all the time. That's part of my job, but so is thinking positively and passing that on to the 100 or so people I work with. That does not come naturally to me.

Best business decision Scaling the house. It took me a long time to come to the Gold Circle method of pricing tickets, but we live and work in a market economy. If someone wants to pay more to see an artist, and that makes it possible to keep the average price more accessible, that serves a purpose.

Best advice you received Become a teacher. Do something secure with a pension to fall back on. I didn't listen.

Best advice to offer Don't book your record collection. If you want to see something, chances are nobody else does. And don't go into this business to hang with the band. There's a reason they're the star and you're not. Respect that.

Most memorable industry experience In 2001 I was working for the City University of New York, and one of our first shows after 9/11 was John Astin's Edgar Allen Poe show. During a school show one of the schools arrived late and completely disrupted the performance. It really threw John off his game, but after the show someone explained to him that the school was late because they had a bomb threat. He went right out to their school bus, still in costume and sat and talked to them for an hour. In the midst of that horrible time so many people were so generous, and many good things happened.

Favorite team/athlete The Mets. I'm from New York, but there's no poetry in being a Yankees fan. They're a very consistent team year after year. The Mets on the other hand, you never know if they're going to remember to bring their bats to work. Then, when they're all but mathematically out of contention, they'll surprise you. They'll probably crush you even harder in the end, but you never know.

What friends would be surprised to learn about you Nothing. My good friends know pretty much everything.

Industry pet peeve Everyone talks, but very few of us listen. If you take the time to listen when we talk, I'll tell you what works in our venue and what doesn't, and where else your artist might belong in this market. We could all save a lot of time and be more productive that way.

Office paraphernalia The Sarcastic Magic 8 Ball. It was a Christmas present from a staff member. It's right more than I am. And a baseball and glove. I pound the ball to keep from screaming at rough moments.

If I wasn't doing this, I would be... ...I can't imagine. I feel very lucky to have found a career that I love and that suits me. I remember what it's like to get up every day and go to a job that didn't fit me, and not coincidentally that I hated. Most days it's a lot less glamorous than the public thinks, but when everything works, it's an emotional payoff that'll carry me for… oh… at least a day or two until the next box office disaster.

Industry mentors Peg Lewis, the program director at the Huntington Arts Council. She's retired now, and I learned a lot looking over her shoulder. I'm somewhere in the age bracket she was when she first hired me as a security guard. Once or twice a week one or another of our younger staff members bends my ear about the latest band. I can tell they think my programming is old and stodgy, and I find myself saying, "Holy cow. I've turned into Peg Lewis." But some of our younger staff have serious careers in this business ahead of them if they want it, and I'm content knowing that one day they'll know what I know now.

And Mike Rothbard and Kathy Bodily at IMAC on Long Island. They built their venue through sheer will power, and I learned that if you're crazy enough to devote the vast amount of time each and every day that this takes, and it does take a certain amount of creative maladjustment to succeed at this business, you really can do something interesting and meaningful in your community.

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